Page 38 of Just Say Christmas
“Or,” Nyree said, “you could go ahead and tell them then and there, and let the chips fall. I’m right there with you, and so is Marko.” Which was true, so he’d let her speak for him. “How about Kane?” she asked. “Does he know?” She looked around. “Where’s Victoria? I expected her to be out here already. Probably with a clipboard. Surprised she didn’t have us pre-order our meals.”
“No,” Luke said. “I didn’t tell him. Didn’t have a chance. They had some dramas of their own last night. Made up, started over, something like that. They’ve gone off to Victoria’s, I think.” He wasn’t looking at Marko. Why not?
“Wait,” Kate said. “You’ve come out of the closet, you mean? All right, I’m officially surprised. Wow. Still reacting.”
“Because you’re ugly, she means, mate,” Koti said. “Told you.” And all the fellas laughed.
“I can’t believe the things men say,” Faith said. “How is that all right? Aren’t you supposed to be supportive? If it was women, we’d hug. You insult. I’ll never get it.”
“It makes Luke feel better,” Kate explained. “It’s how he knows they’re back to normal, like the way playing your hardest all the way to the end, even against a weaker opponent, is a sign of respect, when you’d think you’d ease up, because you’ve already won and you don’t want to rub it in. Don’t ask me why, but that’s how it works.”
Marko reckoned it was time for him to say something. Luke was going to be his brother-in-law, which meant that his opinion might matter. He grasped Luke’s shoulder, gave him a quick hug and thump on the back, during which Luke held himself rigid, and said, “Announce when you like, mate. You won’t spoil our day. I’m not expecting much in that department.”
“Excuse me?” Nyree asked.
“From your stepfather,” he said. “Grant doesn’t like me anyway. I’m a bad influence. Also an arrogant bastard.”
“Disloyal, too,” Nyree put in.
“Well, there’s that,” Marko agreed.
“You don’t like him, either,” Nyree said. “So that’s fair.” And finally, Luke smiled.
“Thanks for telling us, bro,” Marko said, quietly this time. “It’s time, I reckon.”
“It is,” Luke said. “Past time. No choice.” And cleared his throat again.
“OK,” Kate said. “Back up. This is touching, and we’re all supportive, right?” She looked around. “Anybody not supportive?”
“If we weren’t,” Will said with a cheeky grin, “Nyree’d put us right fast enough. Nah, bro,” he told Luke, “reckon we’re all supportive. None of our business, is what I’d say. Good for kids, too. You could look at it as doing them a favor, if you like, because it’s going to matter to some kid out there that you said it. Somebody has to be first. May as well be somebody who can take the heat. It’s not going to make you tackle any less hard, so again—no difference to me. I’m still expecting to be lying on my back in the rain with the wind knocked out of me next time. Who’d be a ten, eh.”
“I’m not tactful,” Kate said, “but I’m guessing that Luke would rather that we talk about something else now. Like, say,anythingelse. The weather. It’s sunny. Surprise. It’s December. Or the ballet, and if Chloe can possibly be as sexy in that first part as everybody’s saying, seeing as it’s a Christmas-intensive event and all. That’s the only reason Koti’s going. Hesayshe’s doing it for the kids. Ha. Although, come to think of it, why shouldn’t Christmas be sexy? Chestnuts roasting by an open fire? Dads go to theNutcracker,too. For that matter,mumsgo to the Nutcracker. Anyway—beautiful athletes of all genders and sexual persuasions, wearing skin-tight clothing and moving their bodies with power and grace? What’snotsexy about that? But first, before we have that fascinating discussion, I want to hear about this seeing-in-color thing.”
“Synesthesia,” Marko said, when Nyree didn’t. She still thought it made her seem strange. Which it did, but in an interesting way. “Some people hear musical notes when they see numbers. Nyree sees people in color.”
“I do,” Nyree said. “If Luke can come out, I guess I can, too. I don’t usually say, because it’s a pretty weird quality, apparently. Also a bit personal, maybe, what I see. To the person,” she tried to explain. “Like you’re looking inside, I guess, or underneath their . . . surface, compared to what other people see. What I imagine they see. It took me a while to realize that other people don’t see the colors, and I still don’t quite understand how they . . . how they do see. Or don’t.” She stopped and laughed a little. “I’m not making sense. It’s hard to explain.”
Marko took her hand. It seemed like a good idea. He might not see her color, but he could feel her honesty. And her heart.
“Auras, you mean?” Faith asked. “Is that it?”
“No,” Nyree said. “At least—I don’t know what auras are, really. You stay the same color, though the shade can change. It’s not scientific. It’s not proven. It’s just what I see.”
“I’m making breakfast,” Emma decided, and started pulling bacon and eggs out of the fridge. “Nic, could you give me a hand?”
“Course,” he said. He managed to grab her bum while he was “helping,” though, Marko noticed. He wasn’t the only one feeling nineteen this morning.
“So Luke’s blue. What color am I?” Kate asked. “Just to get to the most important thing. Hand me the coffee from in there, Emma, and I’ll make a pot and inhale the smell while I drink herbal tea and wish I didn’t have to. Why does herbal tea have to taste so . . . herbal? It’s like you’ve steeped some grass in hot water and charged people for it.”
“You’re a sort of reddish-orange,” Nyree said. “Vital, like me. Hardly anybody’s orange, but you are. Koti’s silver. He’s so bright, you almost get blinded.”
Kate sighed. “Don’t tell him that. He does not need to know that. How about Marko?”
“He’s red,” Nyree said. “He’s always been red. He’sveryred. Call that ‘intense.’ Nic’s green,” she went on. “Grounded. A lot of rugby players are green, at least heaps of All Blacks tend to be, since they need that even sort of temperament. And Emma’s pink, which is probably no surprise to anyone. Loving. Artistic. Luke is dark blue, but clearer now, sort of a calm strength. Will’s bright blue, powerful but . . . lively, and Faith is yellow.”
“Uh-oh,” Faith said. “Yellow doesn’t sound good. Can I be blue instead?”
“Clear yellow is good,” Nyree said. Her confidence was back again. You couldn’t shake Nyree for long. “It’s light, and warm. No color isbad,unless it’s really muddy, especially muddy brown, and nobody here is a muddy brown. People are different, that’s all.”
